Index of Consumer Sentiment in Germany Drops the Most in Survey History in March

Source: ZEW

The Economic Sentiment for Germany was recorded at minus 39.3 points in the March 2022 survey, down by 93.6 points. The decline was the highest in survey history. DAX is down -0.83%, EURUSD is up +0.50%.

• The economic situation also worsened, with the corresponding gauge falling by 13.3 points to minus 21.4 points.
• ZEW President Professor Achim Wambach says the outlook weakened practically across all sectors of the economy, led by the energy-intensive sector and finance.
• The decline in the economic sentiment was attributed to the concerns of growing recession due to the ongoing war in Ukraine. An extreme increase in inflation fears were also blamed, with the price expectations gauging rising by 107.7 points to 70.2 points. 
• The record fall in economic sentiment means that it has surpassed a fall of 58.2 points that was recorded at the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. 
• Expectations also fell across the rest of the eurozone, with the financial market experts’ sentiment, which gauges the economic development, falling by 87.3 points to a minus 38.7 points. The situation indicator was also down by 22.5 points to 21.9 points.
• Consumers in the eurozone also projected high inflation, with the expectations gauge edging higher by 104.6 points to 69.5 points. 76.5% of respondents see higher inflation in the next six months of the year.